Robot system

ABSTRACT

A robot system may include a robot controller; and a target robot. The target robot may include a first memory to store device specific data including individual identification data; and an individual difference parameter unique to the target robot. The robot controller may include a second memory structured to store the individual identification data and the individual difference parameter of the target robot connected to the robot controller; and a controller to control the target robot on the basis of model configuration information the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory. The controller may check the individual identification data read from the first memory unit against the individual identification data stored in the second memory unit and, in accordance with a checking result, update the individual difference parameter stored in the second memory unit with the individual difference parameter read from the first memory unit.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 toJapanese Application No. 2017-241615 filed Dec. 18, 2017, the entirecontent of which is incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

At least an embodiment of the present invention relates to a robotsystem that includes a manipulator as a robot body and a robotcontroller for controlling this manipulator.

BACKGROUND

In general, a robot system is configured to include: a manipulator, thatis, a robot body; and a robot controller that controls the manipulator.The manipulator includes: an arm and a hand that are coupled to eachother; and a motor that drives a coupled portion of those arm and hand.In order to control rotation of each of the motors in the manipulator bythe robot controller, an encoder is attached to each of the motors todetect a rotary position thereof, and rotary position informationacquired by the encoder is transmitted to the robot controller asneeded. In some cases, the robot system is provided with an auxiliarycomponent such as an aligner that changes an attitude of a workpiece asa target of processing by the manipulator. The auxiliary component isalso a control target of the robot controller.

In the manipulator as the robot body, numbers and dimensions of the armand the hand, a connection relationship between those arm and hand, aspecification of each of the motors mounted therein differ by robotmodels. Accordingly, the robot controller is prepared for each of therobot models. Furthermore, even among the robots of the same model,individual differences of the manipulators are inevitable. Thus, whencontrolling such a manipulator, the robot controller has to control themanipulator in accordance with the individual difference thereof. Anexample of the individual difference is an offset value from a positionof an origin. The position of the origin is set for each of themanipulators as a reference attitude for an operation thereof. However,due to attachment variations of the motors and the encoders, and thelike, a value of rotary position data presented by the encoder of eachof the motors at the position of the origin differs by units of themanipulators. The same applies to the auxiliary component having amotor. In view of the above, the individual difference is actuallymeasured upon completion of assembly of each of the robots, or the like.The individual difference is then stored in a memory unit of the robotcontroller. For this reason, the manipulator cannot easily be replacedwith another manipulator of the same model, and the other manipulator ofthe same model cannot easily be connected to the robot controller evenwhen the manipulators of the same model are set as control targets ofthe robot controller.

In Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-242922,as an attempt to allow replacement of the robot body that is connectedto the robot controller, a robot system that can control the robot bodyby the robot controller even when a built-in board in the robot body isreplaced is disclosed. In Japanese Unexamined Patent ApplicationPublication No. 2004-148433, in order to automate work of updating datathat is associated with a robot mechanism or a mechanism unit afterreplacement thereof, a technique of rewriting data in the robotcontroller by data read from the robot mechanism or the mechanism unitupon detection of the replacement is disclosed. Japanese UnexaminedPatent Application Publication No. 2016-137526 relates to information onsensors provided in a robot and discloses a technique of reading theinformation into the robot controller from the robot body afterreplacement of the robot body. Japanese Unexamined Patent ApplicationPublication No. 2013-56738 discloses a technique of using replacementmemory to appropriately and easily migrate robot operation data from therobot controller that has been used so far to a new robot controller.

The replacement of the robot controller that is connected to the robotbody of a certain model with another robot controller for the samemodel, or the replacement of the robot body that is connected to therobot controller with the robot body within the same model range isnothing less than a change of a combination of the robot controller andthe robot body within the same model range. Thus, the techniquesdisclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2001-242922, 2004-148433, 2016-137526, and 2013-56738, each of whichallows changing of the robot body connected to the robot controller, arenot necessarily optimized techniques from a perspective of the change ofthe combination of the robot controller and the robot body within thesame model range. In the technique disclosed in Japanese UnexaminedPatent Application Publication No. 2013-56738, when the robot controlleris changed, a backup of a parameter relevant to the individualdifference has to be created, which complicates a procedure.

SUMMARY

At least an embodiment of the present invention provides a robot systemcapable of facilitating replacement and connection of a robot controlleror an auxiliary component to a robot body and minimizing data volumeheld on the robot body side or the auxiliary component side.

A robot system of at least an embodiment of the present invention is arobot system having a robot controller and a target robot as a target ofcontrol by the robot controller. The target robot includes a firstmemory unit storing device specific data that contains: individualidentification data used to identify the target robot; and an individualdifference parameter unique to the target robot. The robot controllerincludes: a second memory unit that stores the individual identificationdata and the individual difference parameter of the target robotconnected to the robot controller; and a control unit that controls thetarget robot on the basis of model configuration information common tothe target robots of the same model and the individual differenceparameter stored in the second memory unit. The control unit checks theindividual identification data read from the first memory unit againstthe individual identification data stored in the second memory unit and,in accordance with a checking result, updates the individual differenceparameter stored in the second memory unit with the individualdifference parameter read from the first memory unit.

According to at least an embodiment of the present invention asdescribed above, in the case where the robot controller that isconnected to the target robot is replaced with a robot controller forthe same model, the robot controller can control the target robot on thebasis of the individual difference parameter stored in the target robotand thus can realize the appropriate control for the target robot.

In the robot system of at least an embodiment of the present invention,the target robot may include a robot body as a manipulator and anauxiliary component. In such a case, each of the robot body and theauxiliary component includes the first memory unit. In the case whereonly the individual identification data of the auxiliary component readfrom the first memory unit differs from the individual identificationdata of the auxiliary component stored in the second memory unit, thecontrol unit may determine that the auxiliary component has beenreplaced, and may updates only the individual difference parameter ofthe auxiliary component in the second memory unit. With such aconfiguration, in the robot system that includes the auxiliary componentsuch as an aligner, appropriate control can be executed even in the casewhere only the auxiliary component is replaced.

In the robot system of at least an embodiment of the present invention,the device specific data may contain information on the model of thetarget robot, and, in the case where the information on the model in thedevice specific data does not match a model as the target of the robotcontroller, the control unit may disallow a start of the robot system.In this way, failure caused by connecting the robot controller foranother model can be prevented.

In the robot system of at least an embodiment of the present invention,the device specific data may contain information on a configuration ofthe target robot, and, in the case where the information on theconfiguration in the device specific data does not match a configurationof the target robot of the model as the target of the robot controller,the control unit may disallow the start of the robot system. In thisway, in the case where mismatch of the configurations such as improperconnection of a wire of a motor in the target robot is present, anoperation of the robot system can be prevented.

In the robot system of at least an embodiment of the present invention,as the individual difference parameter, an offset value from a positionof an origin may be used. In this way, when the robot controller isreplaced, adjustment of the offset value or measurement of the offsetvalue does not have to be newly performed, and the new robot controllercan drive the target robot.

In the robot system of at least an embodiment of the present invention,the target robot may include: a motor provided for each shaft; and anencoder that detects a rotary position of the motor, and the firstmemory unit may be provided in the encoder. In the target robot, theindividual difference parameter such as the offset value varies byreplacing the motor. However, since the device specific data is storedin the memory unit of the encoder as a part attached to the motor, thedevice specific data is stored in association with the part to bereplaced. Therefore, management of the robot system is facilitated. Inthis case, the control unit detects replacement of the motor in thetarget robot on the basis of the device specific data, and disallows thestart of the robot system when detecting the replacement of the motor.The replacement of the motor requires new adjustment in the targetrobot. Thus, by disallowing the start of the robot system upon detectionof the replacement of the motor, the operation of the target robot thatis insufficiently adjusted can be prevented.

According to at least an embodiment of the present invention, the robotsystem capable of facilitating the replacement and the connection of therobot controller or the auxiliary component to the robot body andminimizing data volume held on the robot body side or the auxiliarycomponent side is obtained.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, withreference to the accompanying drawings which are meant to be exemplary,not limiting, and wherein like elements are numbered alike in severalFigures, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a configuration of a robot system in anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a table showing a format of device specific data saved in eachencoder;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of an operation of the robot system shown in FIG.1;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the operation of the robot system shown in FIG.1; and

FIG. 5 is a state transition diagram of the operation of the robotsystem shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Next, a description will be made on an embodiment of the presentinvention with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a robot system inan embodiment of the present invention. This robot system includes: arobot body 1 that is configured as a manipulator; and a robot controller2 that controls the robot body 1. The robot body 1 and the robotcontroller 2 are detachably connected to each other by a connectioncable 3. A connector 31 for connection with the robot body 1 is attachedto one end of the connection cable 3, and a connector 32 for connectionwith the robot controller 2 is attached to the other end of theconnection cable 3. As indicated by a broken line in FIG. 1, the robotsystem may be provided with an aligner 4, as an auxiliary component,thatchanges an attitude of a workpiece. In such a case, the aligner 4 isalso connected to the robot controller 2 and controlled by the robotcontroller 2. An auxiliary component other than the aligner 4 may beprovided. Components as targets of control by the robot controller 2will collectively be referred to as a target robot. As an exampledescribed herein, the target robot includes the robot body 1 and thealigner 4.

The robot body 1 has plural drive shafts and includes, for each of thedrive shafts: a motor 11 that is a servomotor to drive the drive shaft;a driver 12 that controls driving of the motor 11 on the basis of acommand from the robot controller 2; and an encoder 13 that is attachedto a rotary shaft of the motor 11 and detects a rotary position of therotary shaft. Although not shown, each of the motors 11 also includes areduction gear, a pulley, and the like as auxiliary components. Each ofthe encoders 13 is provided with a non-volatile memory unit 14 thatstores an operation parameter of the encoder 13. Each of the memoryunits 14 is typically formed from electrically erasable programmableread-only memory (EEPROM). In the case where the aligner 4 is providedin the robot system, the aligner 4 is handled as a single-shaft robot,that is, having one each of the motor 11, the driver 12, and the encoder13. The non-volatile memory unit 14 is also provided in the encoder 13of the aligner 4.

The robot controller 2 includes: a control unit 21 that generates thecommand to the motor 11 for each of the shafts on the basis of therotary position read from the encoder 13 for each of the shafts suchthat the robot body 1 moves on a predetermined trajectory; and anon-volatile memory unit 22 that stores parameters required forcalculation in the control unit 21. The memory unit 22 storesdescriptive data on a configuration of the robot such as lengths of anarm and a hand constituting the robot body 1 as the manipulator, aconnection relationship between the arm and the hand, and aspecification of each of the motors 11, that is, information that can beused commonly for the robots of the same model. The information that isregarded as common to the robots of the same model regardless ofindividual differences, just as described, will be referred to as modelconfiguration information. The memory unit 22 also stores a parameterfor which the individual differences cannot be ignored even among therobots of the same model. An example of such a parameter is an offsetvalue from a position of an origin acquired by each of the encoders 13.In the case where the aligner 4 is provided, the memory unit 22 furtherstores the offset value relevant to the aligner 4. When controlling therobot body 1 and the aligner 4, the control unit 21 uses the modelconfiguration information and the parameters relevant to the individualdifferences such as the offset values, both of which are stored in thememory unit 22.

In the robot system of the present embodiment, a robot controller thatis connected to the robot body 1 of a certain model can be replaced withanother robot controller for the same model. Alternatively, a robot bodythat is connected to the robot controller 2 can be replaced with anotherrobot body within the same model range. Both of these types of thereplacement fall within a range of combinations of the robot body 1 andthe robot controller 2 in the same model range, and these types of thereplacement will be referred to as “replacement of the robot controller”in the following description. For example, the replacement of the robotcontroller with a robot controller prepared as a spare part alsocorresponds to the replacement of the robot controller. In the presentembodiment, in order to allow the replacement of the robot controller,device specific data is written in the non-volatile memory unit 14 ofeach of the encoders 13. At the start of the robot system, the robotcontroller 2 reads the device specific data from each of the encoders13. In the case where it is determined that the robot controller hasbeen replaced as a result of reading, the control unit 21 of the robotcontroller 2 uses the device specific data read from the encoders 13 toexecute necessary processing.

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary format of the device specific data that issaved in the memory unit 14 of each of the encoders 13. The devicespecific data is fixed-length data that contains data on a robot type(model), data used to identify the robot body 1 or the aligner 4 as anindividual component, and a parameter that possibly varies among therobot bodies 1 or the aligners 4 of the same model as the individualdifference (for example, the offset value from the position of theorigin). The data used to identify the robot body 1 or the aligner 4 asthe individual component will be referred to as individualidentification data. In the present embodiment, a serial number is usedas the individual identification data. However, another type of data maybe used as the individual identification data. Meanwhile, the parameterthat possibly varies among the robot bodies 1 or the aligners 4 of thesame model as the individual difference will be referred to as anindividual difference parameter. As shown in FIG. 2, the device specificdata is configured to contain header information and a data section inan order of addresses. The similar device specific data is also storedin the memory unit 14 of the aligner 4. The header information containsa field of a format version that identifies the format of the devicespecific data, a field of a written state, a reserved field, and a fieldof checksums for the header information. In the field of the writtenstate, data indicative of whether the device specific data is in aninitial state, whether writing of the device specific data is completed,or whether the device specific data is currently written and thus isincomplete is written. The field of the checksums for the headerinformation is a field in which the checksums for the field of theformat version, the field of the written state, and the reserved fieldin the header information are stored.

The data section is configured to contain a field of checksums for thedata section in which the checksums for the entire data section arestored, a field of the robot type as data on the robot model, a field ofthe serial number, a field of the offset value from the position of theorigin, a field of a physical shaft number, a field of a robot tasknumber, and a reserved field. In the present embodiment, the individualdifference parameter, which is saved as the device specific data in eachof the encoders 13, is not the parameter relevant to the entire robotbody 1 but is limited to the parameter relevant to the correspondingencoder 13. Accordingly, as the offset value from the position of theorigin, an offset value of the rotary position acquired by the encoder13, which stores the device specific data, at the time when the robotbody 1 is at the position of the origin is stored. The individualdifference parameter that is stored in the memory unit 14 of the aligner4 is limited to the individual difference parameter acquired by theencoder 13 of the aligner 4. Under the assumption that the robot body 1includes the plural drive shafts and the unique physical shaft number isassigned to each of those drive shafts, the field of the physical shaftnumber indicates the physical shaft relevant to the encoder 13, whichstores the device specific data. The robot task number is a numberindicative of whether the encoder 13, which stores the device specificdata, is provided in the robot body 1 or the aligner 4. In the presentembodiment, the same robot types are used for the robot body 1 and thealigner 4, and these robots are distinguished from each other by usingthe robot task numbers. In the case where the plural auxiliarycomponents are used, the different robot task number is assigned to eachtype of the auxiliary components. The serial number constitutes theindividual identification data, and each of the physical shaft numberand the robot task number is the information on the configuration of thetarget robot.

In general, the encoder 13 is not detached from the motor 11. Thus, whenthe motor 11 in the robot body 1 or the aligner 4 is replaced, the motor11 is replaced together with the encoder 13. Accordingly, it can be saidthat the device specific data stored in the memory unit 14 of theencoder 13 is the data associated with the motor 11. When the motor 11is replaced, the offset value from the position of the origin varies dueto a variation in assembly of the motors 11 at the time. As a result,adjustment work has to be performed to set the offset value again. Forthis reason, in the present embodiment, while the replacement of therobot controller 2 is allowed, the replacement of the motor 11 itself inthe robot body 1 or the aligner 4 is disallowed and thus is consideredas an error. For a similar reason, the physical shaft number that issaved in the encoder 13 has to match the physical shaft number of thedrive shaft with which the encoder 13 is associated. In addition, allthe encoders 13 provided in the same robot body 1 have the same serialnumbers in the device specific data. Needless to say, the encoder 13that is provided in the different robot body 1 has the different serialnumber in the device specific data. In regard to the aligner 4 that issimultaneously used with the robot body 1, the serial number in thedevice specific data on the robot body 1 side may be the same as ordifferent from the serial number in the device specific data on thealigner 4 side.

The description has been made on the data configuration of the devicespecific data by using FIG. 2. As the parameter that is stored in thedevice specific data and has the individual difference among the robotsof the same model, a parameter other than the offset value from theposition of the origin may be used, or plural types of parameters may beused. Furthermore, in order to detect the improper replacement or thelike, as the information used to identify the robot as the individualcomponent, information other than the robot type and the serial numbermay be used, or another type of information may be used in addition tothe robot type and the serial number.

Next, a description will be made on processing in the robot system thatis executed after the robot controller 2 is replaced. In the presentembodiment, the robot controller 2 is prepared for each of the robotmodels as the control targets. Thus, the memory unit 22 of the robotcontroller 2 stores the data on the robot type, the model configurationinformation on the dimensions and the specifications that are common tothe model, and the individual identification data and the individualdifference parameters of the robot body 1 (and further the aligner 4)that is currently connected or has been connected last. Instead of theindividual identification data and the individual difference parametersof the robot body 1 (and further the aligner 4) that is currentlyconnected or has been connected last, initial values of the individualidentification data and the individual difference parameters may bestored in the memory unit 22. Furthermore, the individual identificationdata and the individual difference parameters may be able to be reset tothe initial values by a command operation in the robot controller 2.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are flowcharts of processing that is executed by therobot system. The processing shown herein is processing to start therobot system by the robot controller 2 when power is turned on, and thelike. In the following description, when only the robot body 1 isconnected to the robot controller 2, each of the drive shafts of therobot body 1 will be referred to as an effective shaft. When both of therobot body 1 and the aligner 4 are connected to the robot controller 2,each of the drive shafts of the robot body 1 and the aligner 4 will bereferred to as the effective shaft. When the power of this robot systemis turned on in a state where the robot body 1 is connected and thealigner 4 is further connected upon necessity, in step 101, the controlunit 21 of the robot controller 2 reads the device specific data, whichis stored in the memory unit (EEPROM) 14 of the encoder 13 of each ofthe effective shafts, from the encoder 13. Then, in step 102, thecontrol unit 21 of the robot controller 2 determines whether reading ofthe data for all the effective shafts is successfully finished. Ifreading is not successfully finished, the control unit 21 determinesthat a real-time error has occurred, and terminates the operation of therobot system. If reading of the data for all the effective shafts issuccessfully finished, the control unit 21 determines in step 103whether the serial numbers are the same in the device specific data ofthe shafts that have the same robot task numbers in the data read fromthe encoders 13. If the device specific data that contains the differentserial number is present, the presence of such data means that the motor11 has been replaced. Thus, the control unit 21 determines that a motorreplacement error has occurred, and terminates the operation of therobot system.

If the motor replacement error does not occur in step 103, the controlunit 21 determines in step 104 whether the robot types (models) readfrom the encoders 13 of all the effective shafts match the robot typesthat are saved in advance in the memory unit 22. If the robot types readfrom the encoders 13 do not match the robot types saved in the memoryunit 22, the robot body 1 or the aligner 4 of the model other than thecontrol target of the robot controller 2 is connected to the robotcontroller 2. Thus, the control unit 21 determines that a model mismatcherror occurs, and terminates the operation of the robot system. If therobot types read from the encoders 13 match the robot types saved in thememory unit 22 in step 104, the control unit 21 determines in step 111whether the physical shaft numbers and the robot task numbers read fromthe encoders 13 of all the effective shafts match the physical shaftnumbers and the robot task numbers that are saved in advance in thememory unit 22. When the robot controller 2 reads the device specificdata from the plural encoders 13, the robot controller 2 reads the dataone by one from the encoders 13 in a predetermined order. However, atthis time, the robot controller 2 possibly reads the data in a differentorder from the original order due to improper connection of motor wiresor the like. In this case, a mismatch of the physical shaft numbers orthe robot task numbers occurs. Even in the case where the data is readin parallel from the plural encoders 13, the mismatch of the physicalshaft numbers or the robot task numbers occurs when the wires areimproperly connected. Thus, if the mismatch of the physical shaftnumbers or the robot task numbers occurs, the control unit 21 determinesthat a configuration mismatch error has occurred, and terminates theoperation of the robot system.

In step 111, if the physical shaft numbers and the robot task numbersread from the encoders 13 of all the effective shafts match the physicalshaft numbers and the robot task numbers saved in the memory unit 22,the control unit 21 determines in step 112 whether the serial numbersread from the encoders 13 of all the effective shafts match the serialnumbers saved in the memory unit 22. Here, the case where the serialnumbers read from the encoders 13 match the serial numbers saved in thememory unit 22 is the case where neither the robot controller 2 nor thealigner 4 is replaced. Thus, next in step 113, the control unit 21determines whether the offset values of all the effective shafts thatare saved in the memory unit 22 match the offset values read from theencoders 13. If the offset values of all the effective shafts that aresaved in the memory unit 22 match the offset values read from theencoders 13, it can be determined that the offset values, that is, theindividual difference parameters saved in the memory unit 22 of therobot controller 2 are appropriate. Thus, in step 114, the control unit21 normally starts the robot system and terminates the processing tostart the robot system.

The case where the offset values that are saved in advance in the memoryunit 22 of the robot controller 2 do not match the offset values readfrom the encoders 13 in step 113 is the case where readjustment of themotor 11, and the like are performed but results thereof are notreflected to the robot controller 2 side. Thus, in step 115, the controlunit 21 rewrites the offset values saved in the memory unit 22 by theoffset values read from the encoders 13, and then terminates theprocessing. Thereafter, the power is turned on again. In such a case,the processing from step 101 to step 112 is executed, which thenproceeds to step 113 and step 114. Thus, the robot system is normallystarted on the basis of the rewritten offset values.

The case where the serial numbers read from the encoders 13 do not matchthe serial numbers saved in the memory unit 22 in step 112 is the casewhere the robot controller 2 has been replaced or the aligner 4 has beenreplaced. Accordingly, if the mismatch of the serial numbers occurs instep 112, the control unit 21 determines in step 116 whether themismatch of the serial numbers only occurs to the shaft of the aligner 4that is identified from the robot task number. If the mismatch of theserial numbers only occurs to the shaft of the aligner 4, it can bedetermined that the aligner 4 has been replaced. Thus, in step 117, thecontrol unit 21 rewrites the offset value of the shaft of the aligner 4stored in the memory unit 22 by the offset value read from the encoder13, and then terminates the processing. Thereafter, in the case wherethe power is turned on again, the robot system is normally started onthe basis of the rewritten offset value.

If the mismatch of the serial numbers occurs to the shafts in additionto the shaft of the aligner 4 in step 116, it can be determined that therobot controller 2 has been replaced. Thus, in step 118, the controlunit 21 rewrites the serial numbers and the offset values of all theeffective shafts that are stored in the memory unit 22 by the serialnumbers and the offset values read from the encoders 13, and thenterminates the processing. In the case where the power is turned onagain, the robot system is normally started on the basis of therewritten serial numbers and the rewritten offset values. The serialnumbers (that is, the individual identification data) and the offsetvalues (that is, the individual difference parameters) that are storedin the memory unit 22 of the robot controller 2 are rewritten by theserial numbers and the offset values that are read from the encoders 13of the robot body 1 (and the aligner 4). Accordingly, in the case wherethe robot body 1 or the aligner 4, which is connected to the robotcontroller 2, has been replaced, the robot controller 2 is compatiblewith the robot body 1 or the aligner 4 after the replacement. In regardto the robot controller 2 as the spare part in which the initial valuesof the individual identification data (the serial numbers) and theindividual difference parameters (the offset values) are stored in thememory unit 22, when the processing described herein is executed, such arobot controller 2 becomes suited for the control of the robot body 1and the aligner 4 connected thereto.

FIG. 5 is a state transition diagram for illustrating the processingdescribed herein. An appropriate state of the robot controller 2 forcontrolling the robot body 1 and the auxiliary component such as thealigner 4 connected thereto will be referred to as a normal state. Inthe case where the robot controller 2 is replaced in the normal state,an event indicating that the robot controller 2 has been replaced occursat the start as shown in above step 118, the individual differenceparameters are then automatically copied in the memory unit 22 of therobot controller 2 from the encoders 13 side, and the robot controller 2returns to the normal state. Thereafter, when an operation to turn thepower on is performed, the robot controller 2 is automatically restoredin the normal state. Similarly, in the case where the auxiliarycomponent such as the aligner 4 is replaced, an event indicating thatthe auxiliary component has been replaced occurs at the start as shownin above step 117, the individual difference parameter is automaticallycopied in the memory unit 22 of the robot controller 2 from the encoder13 side, and the robot controller 2 returns to the normal state.Meanwhile, in the case where the motor 11 is replaced, as shown in step103, the motor replacement error occurs. As a result, the processing tostart the robot system is terminated abnormally, and the start of therobot system is disallowed. In order to restore the robot system fromthe motor replacement error to the normal state, maintenance work suchas readjustment work of the shaft corresponding to the motor after thereplacement has to be performed. Both of the model mismatch errordetermined in step 104 and the configuration mismatch error determinedin step 105 are categorized as parameter abnormality in the devicespecific data that is saved in the robot body 1 or the aligner 4 and therobot controller 2. In the case where it is determined that theparameter abnormality is present, the processing to start the robotsystem is terminated abnormally, and the start of the robot system isdisallowed. In order to restore the robot system from the parameterabnormality to the normal state, the correct parameter has to be set byusing the robot controller 2 of the correct model, correcting improperwiring, or the like.

Effects of the Present Embodiment

According to the present embodiment, when the power is turned on or thelike, the device specific data that is stored in the encoders 13 of thetarget robot (the robot body 1 and the aligner 4) is read and checkedagainst the device specific data stored in the robot controller 2. Inthe case where the replacement of the robot controller 2 is detected,the latest individual difference parameters are read into the robotcontroller 2 from the target robot side. Thus, the robot controller 2can be replaced with the robot controller 2 for the same model for use,and the robot controller 2 after the replacement can be used to executethe appropriate control of the target robot connected thereto. Inaddition, in the case where the mismatch of the models, the mismatch ofthe configurations, or the replacement of the motor 11 is detected, thestart of the robot system is disallowed. In this way, the operations ofthe robot body 1 and the aligner 4 in inappropriate states can beprevented.

What is claimed is:
 1. A robot system comprising: a robot controller;and a target robot as a target of control by the robot controller,wherein the target robot comprises a first memory unit structured tostore device specific data comprising: individual identification dataused to identify said target robot; and an individual differenceparameter unique to said target robot, wherein the robot controllercomprises: a second memory unit structured to store the individualidentification data and the individual difference parameter of thetarget robot connected to said robot controller; and a control unitstructured to control the target robot on the basis of modelconfiguration information common to the target robots of the same modeland the individual difference parameter stored in the second memoryunit, and wherein the control unit is structured to check the individualidentification data read from the first memory unit against theindividual identification data stored in the second memory unit and, inaccordance with a checking result, update the individual differenceparameter stored in the second memory unit with the individualdifference parameter read from the first memory unit.
 2. The robotsystem according to claim 1, wherein the target robot comprises a robotbody as a manipulator and an auxiliary component, and each of the robotbody and the auxiliary component comprising the first memory unit, andwherein the control unit is structured such that, in the case where onlythe individual identification data of the auxiliary component read fromthe first memory unit differs from the individual identification data ofthe auxiliary component stored in the second memory unit, the controlunit determines that the auxiliary component has been replaced, andupdates only the individual difference parameter of the auxiliarycomponent in the second memory unit.
 3. The robot system according toclaim 2, wherein the device specific data comprises information on themodel of the target robot, and the control unit is structured such that,in the case where the information on the model in the device specificdata does not match the model as the target of the robot controller, thecontrol unit disallows a start of the robot system.
 4. The robot systemaccording to claim 3, wherein the device specific data comprisesinformation on a configuration of the target robot, and the control unitis structured such that, in the case where the information on theconfiguration in the device specific data does not match a configurationof the target robot of the model as the target of the robot controller,the control unit disallows the start of the robot system.
 5. The robotsystem according to claim 4, wherein the individual difference parameteris an offset value from a position of an origin.
 6. The robot systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the target robot comprises: a motorprovided for each shaft; and an encoder that detects a rotary positionof the motor, and the first memory unit is provided in the encoder. 7.The robot system according to claim 6, wherein the control unit isstructured to detect replacement of the motor in the target robot on thebasis of the device specific data, and, when detecting the replacementof the motor, disallow the start of the robot system.
 8. The robotsystem according to claim 1, wherein the device specific data comprisesinformation on the model of the target robot, and the control unit isstructured such that, in the case where the information on the model inthe device specific data does not match the model as the target of therobot controller, the control unit disallows a start of the robotsystem.
 9. The robot system according to claim 1, wherein the devicespecific data comprises information on a configuration of the targetrobot, and the control unit is structured such that, in the case wherethe information on the configuration in the device specific data doesnot match a configuration of the target robot of the model as the targetof the robot controller, the control unit disallows a start of the robotsystem.
 10. The robot system according to claim 1, wherein theindividual difference parameter is an offset value from a position of anorigin.
 11. A robot system comprising: a robot controller; and a targetrobot as a target of control by the robot controller, wherein the targetrobot comprises a first memory structured to store device specific datacomprising: individual identification data used to identify said targetrobot; and an individual difference parameter unique to said targetrobot, wherein the robot controller comprises: a second memorystructured to store the individual identification data and theindividual difference parameter of the target robot connected to saidrobot controller; and a controller structured to control the targetrobot on the basis of model configuration information common to thetarget robots of the same model and the individual difference parameterstored in the second memory, and wherein the controller is structured tocheck the individual identification data read from the first memoryagainst the individual identification data stored in the second memoryand, in accordance with a checking result, update the individualdifference parameter stored in the second memory with the individualdifference parameter read from the first memory.